What if Christ is a name for the transcendent within of every “thing”
in the universe? What if Christ is a name for the immense spaciousness of all
true Love?... As G. K. Chesterton once wrote, Your religion is not the church you belong to, but the cosmos you live
inside of….A mature Christian sees Christ in everything and everyone else….We
see him so we can see like him, and
with the same infinite compassion.
- Richard Rohr, The Universal Christ: How A Forgotten
Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For, And Believe (2019)
 |
| Maria Agustina, one of my most "Christ-like" friends here in the mountains of Mexico |
I first walked in the mountains
of Mexico forty years ago, in 1979. I was a young, naive high school teacher
from Canada, unconsciously blind to so many factors that allow the world to
function as it does. I daresay that I now see life, creation, religion, politics,
economics, God differently. I am grateful for this learning experience…and I
recognize that I will depart from this world still not knowing all of the
answers. But the noble indigenous peoples of the mountains have shared the
richness of their spirituality and their relationship to life—and I pray that I
be a worthy friend with them on their journey to truth, goodness, and beauty.
 |
| Yadira and her mom, Estela, are grateful and content with Yadira's new wheelchair |
Saint Oscar Romero, the archbishop murdered in
El Salvador in 1980, once stated that “there are many things that can only be
seen through eyes that have cried.” Bishops meeting at the Second Vatican
Council in the 1960s began their document Gaudium
et Spes with these words: “The
joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men [sic] of this age,
especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and
hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ.”
 |
| Don Lencho recently lost his house in a fire—but the struggle to rebuild is underway |
I
have been blessed to have been allowed during almost four decades to be
physically present with many poor and afflicted, and to be allowed to share in
their joys and hopes, their griefs and anxieties. Father Richard Rohr, the
Franciscan priest quoted at the beginning of this blog, writes in that same
book, The Universal Christ, that “only presence can know presence. And
our real presence can know Real Presence.” Besides being stupid, I would have to be blind to not discern (weakly, I admit, and with many failings)
Christ in the people and in the cosmos that surround me here in the mountains
of Mexico.
 |
| Ester and Mario welcomed me to their kindergarten in Naranjo with flowers; there were perhaps 4 or 5 pairs of sandals worn by the 38 kindergarten students and the 80 elementary school students—but smiles abounded |
All
of this is humbling. And especially humbling is the thought of all of the good
people in the Diocese of Calgary who support Mission Mexico in so many different
ways. I have the blessing of presence, of seeing smiles, of receiving hugs, of
observing hope being nourished…and all because of the generosity of donors in
the Diocese of Calgary who trust that the loonies and toonies and dollar bills given
in Canada are being used to make a real difference in the lives of the poor
indigenous peoples here. Sometimes when I think of this sharing between “north”
and “south,” I think of a quote by Denis Goulet, one of the main founders of “development
ethics”: Yes, there is a link between
meaningless lives on one continent and meaningless deaths on another. I
pray that this solidarity with impoverished peoples in another part of the
world helps to give meaning to the lives of the people and families in the
Diocese of Calgary.
 |
| Saturnina, Monica, and Priscila were walking to the next village on this day; Priscila had left her baby boy with her mother |
Thank
you to all those who who support Mission
Mexico. Be assured of the gratitude and the prayers of the beneficiaries
of your solidarity and generosity. May God bless you on your own journey to
Real Life.
 |
| Some students at the Champagnat High School of the Mountain share a birthday cake with the school principal, Brother Wicho |
